Australian Rare Earths has produced its first Mixed Rare Earth Hydroxide at the Koppamurra pilot plant while extending an interpreted carbonatite system at Overland by roughly 5km. The operating progress comes with two important qualifiers: Koppamurra still needs further product refinement and Overland assays remain pending.
- First Mixed Rare Earth Hydroxide produced from Koppamurra leachate
- Approximately 30 tonnes of ore undergoing four-cycle pilot campaign
- 130m downhole interpreted carbonatite intersection at Overland
- A$4.81 million cash at quarter-end and 2.4 quarters of estimated funding
- A$4.85 million received from the A$5 million IPCM grant
Koppamurra Pilot Moves Beyond Leaching
Australian Rare Earths Limited (ASX:AR3) has reached the most tangible processing milestone yet at Koppamurra, producing its first Mixed Rare Earth Hydroxide from pregnant leach solution generated at the ANSTO pilot facility in Sydney. The company describes the result as a transition from demonstrating rare earth extraction to producing a concentrated intermediate product, although the material still needs to be refined into Mixed Rare Earth Oxide samples for customer qualification.
The milestone builds on the first Koppamurra hydroxide milestone, when AR3 reported recovering rare earths from approximately 5,000 litres of leach solution. During the September quarter, the first of four planned heap-leach cycles was completed using about eight tonnes of ore, with the full pilot campaign targeting roughly 30 tonnes and approximately 28 kilolitres of pregnant leach solution in total.
Pilot Data Now Feeds Definitive Study Design
Commissioning was completed on 31 July after processing about one tonne of Koppamurra ore. AR3 said the work confirmed the design basis for agglomerate preparation, irrigation rates, lixiviant requirements, column loading and flow performance, with rare earth recovery reported in line with expectations.
The continuous precipitation circuit is now generating operating data on reagent consumption, residence times, filtration, washing, water balance and product quality. Those results are intended to inform equipment selection and sizing for the Definitive Feasibility Study, which AR3 expects to begin in early 2027. The remaining heap-leach cycles are expected to be completed by December, followed by further hydroxide campaigns and refinement into oxide samples.
Overland Carbonatite Footprint Extends South
At the 100%-owned Overland project, follow-up drilling has extended the interpreted niobium-rare earth carbonatite system approximately 5km south of the original discovery hole. Hole OV176 intersected 130 metres of interpreted carbonatite from 68 metres downhole, ending at 201 metres within the unit, with significant sulphides and a pronounced gamma signature reported from geological observations.
The result adds scale to the Overland carbonatite extension, which the company is testing along a 10km north-south magnetic corridor. However, the 130-metre interval is a downhole length rather than a known true width, and laboratory assays are still pending. AR3 also says the current interpretation relies on geological logging, downhole gamma and portable XRF readings, which are indicative rather than substitutes for laboratory analysis.
Government Funding Eases but Does Not Remove Cash Pressure
AR3 received a further A$2.1 million under the Australian Government’s International Partnerships in Critical Minerals program during the quarter, taking receipts to A$4.85 million of the A$5 million award. A subsequent A$1.02 million R&D tax incentive refund also provided additional funding for Koppamurra pilot work and flowsheet optimisation.
Cash stood at A$4.81 million at 30 September, while the Appendix 5B recorded A$1.605 million of exploration and evaluation spending and A$379,000 of net operating cash outflow during the quarter. On the company’s calculation, that equated to 2.4 quarters of estimated funding based on the quarter’s relevant outgoings. The figure is a snapshot rather than a development budget, but it places funding alongside technical execution as a central issue for the next stage.
Assays and Product Samples Set the Next Tests
The immediate evidence chain now runs in two directions. At Koppamurra, the remaining leach cycles, further hydroxide campaigns and eventual oxide samples must show how consistently the flowsheet performs and whether the product can progress through customer qualification. At Overland, assays, gamma data and planned petrographic and isotopic studies will determine whether the broad carbonatite interpretation is supported by meaningful grades and geometry.
Bottom Line?
AR3 has advanced Koppamurra from pilot extraction to intermediate-product production, but the next value-defining evidence is still ahead: oxide samples, DFS inputs and laboratory assays from Overland.
Questions in the middle?
- Will the remaining Koppamurra cycles reproduce the first hydroxide result and produce oxide samples suitable for customer qualification?
- What rare earth and niobium grades will laboratory assays assign to the 130-metre OV176 interval?
- Can AR3 maintain pilot and study momentum with approximately 2.4 quarters of funding at the reported quarterly spending rate?